A long time ago in the biblical days, a man named Abraham and his wife Sarah, wanted nothing more than to have a child of their own. God saw this and made a covenant with Abraham. The covenant was that Abraham would have to obey God and have all his family along with his descendants worship him, and God will give Abraham children of his own. Abraham took this covenant very seriously, but had some doubts due to the fact that he and his wife were very old. God told Abraham that the child him and Sarah will conceive, is "the child of promise". Sarah thought it would be a good idea to have Abraham conceive a child with their maid, Hagar, so they conceive the child and name him Ishmael. Even though, God had promised the child to come from Sarah, God did not disapprove of this choice but instead said that he too has a purpose of serving another nation. God had finally fulfilled his promise and Abraham and Sarah had a child named Isaac which of whom was "the child of promise". Isaac later than descended Jacob, the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, and Jesus Christ through the nation of Israel. This fulfilled the covenant that Abraham had made with God so he gave the land of Canaan to Isaac's descendants. The land of Canaan also being known as Palestine.
According to the Muslim faith, the origin of Islam is generally accredited to the prophet Muhammad, but to others Islam was there long before Muhammad was even born. Just like Christianity has a religious book called the "Bible or Torah", Islam has a religious book called the Qur'an. Muhammad has dictated the Qur'an, but is not the creator of it. The Qur'an says that the book has been given by God and through the angel Gabriel than to the prophet Muhammad. There has been a great amount of conflict between Jews and Muslims that is causing a lot of bloodshed in the Middle East. The problem is that the bible teaches that Isaac is "the child of promise" while the Qur'an teaches that Ishmael is "the child of promise". Therefore, the Muslims think that God's covenant promises are meant for Ishmael's descendants, not Isaac's. The Muslims believe that they are subjected to the land of Canaan or as the Muslims call it, the land of Palestine.
This is a picture of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike on the Palestinians.
Family Tree
5 Pillars of Islam. 1. Faith (Shahada) - The Shahada is the Islamic proclamation that "There is no true God except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." 2. Prayer (Salat) - Prayer involves confession of sins which begins with the purification of the body and ends with the purification of the soul. Prayer is performed five times a day. The first prayer is at dawn and the last at sunset. 3. Alms-giving or charity (Zakat) - Charity given to the poor. It benefits the poor and it helps the giver by moving him towards more holiness and submission to Allah. Alms-giving is considered a form of worship to God. 4. Fasting (Saum) - The month of Ramadan is the month of fasting in Islam. It is an act of worship where the faithful follower denies his own needs and seeks Allah. Usually, this fasting entails no drinking, eating, or sexual relations during the daylight hours for the entire month of Ramadan. 5. Pilgrimage (Hajj) - This is the pilgrimage to Mecca. All Muslims, if they are able, are to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. It involves financial sacrifice and is an act of worship. Muslims must make the pilgrimage the first half of the last month of the lunar year
What is Islam? Islam is not a new religion, but the same truth that God revealed through all His prophets to every people. For a fifth of the world's population, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life. Muslims follow a religion of peace, mercy, and forgiveness. A Moroccan in prayer.
Muslims praying in Jerusalem outside The Dome of the Rock - The Dome of the Rock is an Islamic Shrine in Jerusalem.
Do Islam and Christianity have different origins?
No. Together with Judaism, they go back to the prophet and patriarch Abraham, and their three prophets are directly descended from his sons, Muhammad from the elder son Ishmael, and Moses and Jesus from the younger son Isaac. Abraham established the settlement which today is the city of Makkah, and built the Ka'ba towards which all Muslims turn when they pray.
Muharram - (Islamic new year) - The month of Muharram marks the beginning of the Islamic liturgical year. The Islamic new year is celebrated relatively quietly, with prayers and readings and reflection upon the hegira. Mawlid al-Nabi - (Muhammad's birthday) - The day is commemorated with recollections of Muhammad's life and significance Ramadan - Is the 9th month of the Islamic lunar calender. Every day during this month, Muslims around the world spend the daylight hours in a complete fast. Eid al-Fitr - (Ramadan ends) Eid Al Adha - (festival of sacrifice) - sacrifice an animal like a sheep to commemorate and remember Mohammad's trials.
The division between the Shia and the Sunni dates back to when Muhammad died. there was a big debate on who would take on leadership of the Muslim nation. The Sunni Muslims agree with the position taken by many of the Prophet's companions, that the new leader should be elected from among those capable of being the leader. Sunni means "one who follows the traditions of the prophet". On the other hand there are the shia Muslims. They believe that following the Prophet Muhammad's death, leadership should have passed directly to his cousin/son-in-law Ali bin Abu Talib. The word Shia in Arabic means a group or supportive party of people. Sumi Muslims make up the majority (85%) of Muslims all over the world. Significant populations of shia Muslims can be found in Iran and Iraq and large minority communities in Yemen, Bahrain, Syria, and Lebanon.
The Beginning
A long time ago in the biblical days, a man named Abraham and his wife Sarah, wanted nothing more than to have a child of their own. God saw this and made a covenant with Abraham. The covenant was that Abraham would have to obey God and have all his family along with his descendants worship him, and God will give Abraham children of his own. Abraham took this covenant very seriously, but had some doubts due to the fact that he and his wife were very old. God told Abraham that the child him and Sarah will conceive, is "the child of promise". Sarah thought it would be a good idea to have Abraham conceive a child with their maid, Hagar, so they conceive the child and name him Ishmael. Even though, God had promised the child to come from Sarah, God did not disapprove of this choice but instead said that he too has a purpose of serving another nation. God had finally fulfilled his promise and Abraham and Sarah had a child named Isaac which of whom was "the child of promise". Isaac later than descended Jacob, the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, and Jesus Christ through the nation of Israel. This fulfilled the covenant that Abraham had made with God so he gave the land of Canaan to Isaac's descendants. The land of Canaan also being known as Palestine.
According to the Muslim faith, the origin of Islam is generally accredited to the prophet Muhammad, but to others Islam was there long before Muhammad was even born. Just like Christianity has a religious book called the "Bible or Torah", Islam has a religious book called the Qur'an. Muhammad has dictated the Qur'an, but is not the creator of it. The Qur'an says that the book has been given by God and through the angel Gabriel than to the prophet Muhammad. There has been a great amount of conflict between Jews and Muslims that is causing a lot of bloodshed in the Middle East. The problem is that the bible teaches that Isaac is "the child of promise" while the Qur'an teaches that Ishmael is "the child of promise". Therefore, the Muslims think that God's covenant promises are meant for Ishmael's descendants, not Isaac's. The Muslims believe that they are subjected to the land of Canaan or as the Muslims call it, the land of Palestine.
This is a picture of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike on the Palestinians.
Family Tree
5 Pillars of Islam.
1. Faith (Shahada) - The Shahada is the Islamic proclamation that "There is no true God except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."
2. Prayer (Salat) - Prayer involves confession of sins which begins with the purification of the body and ends with the purification of the soul. Prayer is performed five times a day. The first prayer is at dawn and the last at sunset.
3. Alms-giving or charity (Zakat) - Charity given to the poor. It benefits the poor and it helps the giver by moving him towards more holiness and submission to Allah. Alms-giving is considered a form of worship to God.
4. Fasting (Saum) - The month of Ramadan is the month of fasting in Islam. It is an act of worship where the faithful follower denies his own needs and seeks Allah. Usually, this fasting entails no drinking, eating, or sexual relations during the daylight hours for the entire month of Ramadan.
5. Pilgrimage (Hajj) - This is the pilgrimage to Mecca. All Muslims, if they are able, are to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. It involves financial sacrifice and is an act of worship. Muslims must make the pilgrimage the first half of the last month of the lunar year
What is Islam?
Islam is not a new religion, but the same truth that God revealed through all His prophets to every people. For a fifth of the world's population, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life. Muslims follow a religion of peace, mercy, and forgiveness.
A Moroccan in prayer.
Muslims praying in Jerusalem outside The Dome of the Rock
- The Dome of the Rock is an Islamic Shrine in Jerusalem.
Do Islam and Christianity have different origins?
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0760942.html
[Hijra = breaking off of relations], the departure of the prophet Muhammad from Mecca in Sept., 622
http://video.about.com/islam/Video--Islamic-Prayer-Timings.htm
Muharram - (Islamic new year) - The month of Muharram marks the beginning of the Islamic liturgical year. The Islamic new year is celebrated relatively quietly, with prayers and readings and reflection upon the hegira.
Mawlid al-Nabi - (Muhammad's birthday) - The day is commemorated with recollections of Muhammad's life and significance
Ramadan - Is the 9th month of the Islamic lunar calender. Every day during this month, Muslims around the world spend the daylight hours in a complete fast.
Eid al-Fitr - (Ramadan ends)
Eid Al Adha - (festival of sacrifice) - sacrifice an animal like a sheep to commemorate and remember Mohammad's trials.
The division between the Shia and the Sunni dates back to when Muhammad died. there was a big debate on who would take on leadership of the Muslim nation. The Sunni Muslims agree with the position taken by many of the Prophet's companions, that the new leader should be elected from among those capable of being the leader. Sunni means "one who follows the traditions of the prophet". On the other hand there are the shia Muslims. They believe that following the Prophet Muhammad's death, leadership should have passed directly to his cousin/son-in-law Ali bin Abu Talib. The word Shia in Arabic means a group or supportive party of people.
Sumi Muslims make up the majority (85%) of Muslims all over the world. Significant populations of shia Muslims can be found in Iran and Iraq and large minority communities in Yemen, Bahrain, Syria, and Lebanon.
http://www.islamicity.com/education/understandingislamandmuslims/default.asp?ContentLocation=/Education/UnderstandingIslamAndMuslims&CurrentPageID=2&Top=&Bottom=&Right=&Left=&SideBarWidth=&RightWidth=&LeftWidth=&SideBarLocation=&Style=&CatID=&Destination=/Education/UnderstandingIslamAndMuslims/2.asp
http://carm.org/five-pillars-of-islam
http://www.padfield.com/2004/covenants.html
http://www.allaboutreligion.org/origin-of-islam.htm
http://islam.about.com/cs/divisions/f/shia_sunni.htm